*-
>
(~^EASE , my son, to Kear the in struction that causeth to err from tke -words of knowledge. pro.,9:27.
A BIDE . . . in the things * »•which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, know in g of whom th o u hast learned them. 2 Tim. 3U4.
ü
LAYMEN’S NUMBER—JULY, 1923
BEWARE OF RECKLESS GIVING! Any Preacher or Teacher who Denies Inspiration of the Bible, Virgin Birth, Sacrificial Death, Physical Resurrection of Jesus Christ ISAN Enemy of the Truth! WHAT SAITH THE SCRIPTURE? " For many deceivers are entered into the world, * * * I f there come any unto you and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed; for he that biddeth him God speed is partaker o f his evil deeds."— (2 John 7 ,1 0 ,1 1 .) THE Your Responsibility You should seek the wisdom of God in the distribution of these sacred funds. You have a right to know, and are accountable for knowing, where your funds are going, and the character of work and workmen entrusted with them. Your Reward If faithfully administered in His name and for His glory, you will find your re. ward in the glory. Your funds will welcome you “in the everlasting habitations.’* Your Regret Money is a sacred trust. We are stewards. We must give an account of our stewardship. We should avoid RECKLESS GIVING. We should seek to make every penny bring the largest possible glory to our Lord. We shall have no re grets if we make investments of this so rt Our Recommendation We will guarantee to invest for you sums in any amount, and advise you where and how they are used, guaranteeing that they will be used in definite, soul saving work. We do this, knowing that we m ust give an account unto God. Write for any desired particulars T. C. H o r t o n Superintendent, Bible Institute
MO TTO : "I.the Lord, do keep it, I will water it every moment lest any hurt it. I will keepltnlaht anddau" • Isa. 27:3 ■ ' ' ............ ..... PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY THE BIBLE INSTITUTE OF LOS ANGELES 33 6- 559 SOUTH HO PE STRE ET . LOS AN GE LES . CAL. E n tered a s S econd-C lass M a tte r N ovem ber 17, 1910, a t th e P o s t Off ice a t Lo s A ngele s, C alif u n d er th e A ct of M arch 3, 1879 A ccep tan ce for m ail ing a t special ra te o f p o stag e p ro v id ed for in S ectio n 1103, A c t of O cto b 1917, au th o rized Oc to b e r 1, 1918 Volume XIV July, 1923 Number 7
T . C, HO RTO N, E d ito r in Chief
K E ITH L . BROOKS, M anaging E d ito
AL AN S. PE ARCE, C ircu latio n R ep resen tativ e
CONTENTS E d ito ria ls: Loyalty to th e L aity (675 ), Loyal Lads and Lasses (676 ), Cheating the Church (677 ), The Lay of the Lost Laym an(678 ), The F aith Once for all Deposited (679 ), Dr. Faunce Said It (680), The Evangelism of th e Modernist (681) Bible Briefs— (683) Why Not a Candid Contest?— By W illiam J. Bryan (684)
Not Yours, B u t YOU— By Hugh R. Munro (685) Progressive Revelation— By Dr. John Maclnnis (689) Evolution Opposed to Science— By J. J. Sims (691) Must We Believe in Miracles?— By K. L. B. (694) Divine A rithmetic of Giving—By T. T. Holloway (696) A Philosophical Oddity—By Roland C. Ross (697) Fundam entals Study— Sanctification— By K. L. B. (700) Notes on th e Jews and Prophecy— (704) Bible In stitu te in Hunan, Chinas—By F ra n k A. K eller (705)
Evangelistic S to r ie s ^ (707) Hom iletical Helps— (713) Bible In stitu te Happenings (717) In tern ation al Sunday School Lessons (719) Fundam entals Sunday School Lessons (747) C urrent Religious Comment (772) PLEASE W h e n s e n d in g s u b s c r ip tio n s , a d d r e s s c o r r e s p o n d e n c e to O ffice o f T h e K in g 's B u s in e s s , B ib le I n s t i t u t e o f L o s A n g e le s , 639 - 568 S o u th H o p e S tr e e t. C h e c k s m a y b e m a d e p a y a b le to B ib le I n s t i t u t e o f L o s A n g e le s . D o n o t m a k e c h e c k s o r m o n e y ... ^ o r d e r s to I n d iv id u a ls c o n n e c te d w ith th e B ib le I n s t i t u t e . •ortr S i- i H * ^ v e “ u c h c o n f u s io n if o r d e r s f o r b o o k s a r e s e n t d ir e c t to B IO L A BO ROOM i n s te a d o f b e in g e n c lo s e d w ith m a il to T h e K in g ’s B u s in e s s . C h e c k s f o r b o o s h o u ld b e m a d e s e p a r a t e ly to th e B o o k B o om . O N L Y O N E D O L L A R A Y E A R FOREIGN COUNTRIES, INCLUDING CANADA $1.25—SINGLE COPIES 15 CENTS Special Club Rate for Ten or More Subscriptions 75c Eack
Investigation Inspires Investment We Are Doing Business for God 24 Hours a Day Every Day in the Year, at Home and in China (R e a d th e R e p o rts in th is C ircle) N O M ILL IO N. AIRE S b e h i n d o u r w or k an d n o t endo w ed.
A N N U IT Y IN . VE ST ME NTS a n d o th e r g ifts a re n ece ssary . Un> questio n ed secu r- i t y furnis hed. B ank references.
O u r ap p eal is to G od's people.
DOIN G EV AN GEL IST IC w ork every d ay . 172 P a i d W orkers (36 in the H om e- land and 136 in C h in a).
TRAIN IN G m en an d w om en for C h ristian w o r k
i n t h e w o r l d fields WIT HOUT C H A R G E for tu itio n . OUR PROPERTY IS DEDICATED TO THE LORD—WE ARE HIS TRUSTEES In the deed to our property is a Statement of Doctrine of the Historic Evangelical Faith, which every Director, Member of Faculty and Department Head must sign each year.
WE COVET YOUR PRAYERS For Further information Address T. C. HORTON, SUPERINTENDENT
Los Angeles, California
536-558 South Hope Street
E D I T O R I A L
3 IIIIIBIIBIiaill!IIIIIIIIIIIIIIHIIII
lllllllllllllllllllIlllillllllllliail
LAYMEN’S NUMBER THE LORD’S MESSAGE TO JOSHUA, THE LAYMAN “This book of th e law shall n o t d ep art ou t of thy m outh; b u t thou sh alt m ed itate th erein day and night, th a t thou mayest observe to do according to all th a t is w ritten th e re in ; fo r th e n th o u sh a lt m ake thy way prosperous, and th en thou sh alt have good success. “Have n o t I commanded th e e? Be strong and of a good cour age; be n o t afraid, n eith er be thou dismayed; fo r th e Lord th y God is w ith thee w hithersoever thou goest” (Jo shu a 1: 8, 9 ). LOYALTY TO THE LAITY The great bulk of the members of our evangelical churches are from the common people, and of these, the. larger part -are at heart true be lievers in the Word of God and in the sacrificial offering of Jesus Christ as an atonement for sin. They believe that Jesus Christ, God’s Son,^ paid the penalty of their sins in His death on the cross, and confess Him as their Lord. But the majority of them have never been built up in the faith. They have never had Bible teaching, for most of the sermons they have heard have been of the textual character which, while they may have been true to the Word of God, have left the people in ignorance of the doctrinal teaching of the Word, - The old-fashioned home has disappeared; the old family Bible, thumbed by father and mother, is gone; a thousand things have^ come into the home and into the daily life that leave but slight opportunity for the Old Book and for prayer. It has not been difficult, therefore,, for the enemy to take advantage of these conditions and the people, having been taught to have faith in the ministry, have taken the food spread for them, believed their pastors and leaders were all right, contributed their funds and taken it for granted that all was well. The ecclesiastical system of the Romish church has, by slow degrees, taken possession of the "evangelical churches and the politicians keep their followers in a lamb-like attitude. Thousands of churches have only a small membership, and many of these, small churches are the cleanest in char acter. The hope of the church lies in a revival which shall produce a revo lution. This hope is centered in the men of the church. They pay the bills; they have the controlling power; they have the right to demand that the old Gospel shall be given. When they do this, the ecclesiastical politicians will bow the knee and the good old Book will be restored to its rightful place.
T HE K I N G ’S B U S I N E S S
676
If this revival-does not take place, the prospect is perilous. The enemies without the church are bare-faced and brazen. There are no depths to which they will not descend in order to carry out their despicable purposes. These are hard words to utter, but they are true. The meanest men living today (and the same has been true in the history of religious life) are the political shysters, serving at the shrine of Satan, wearing the livery of heaven and wantonly destroying the faith of the saints. Our Lord never had any respect for them, neither had the prophets, nor the apostles. The Protestant Church is itself the protest against the practice of “ rule or ruin,” and from the lips of Christ and from the good old Book comes the command to east out the money-changers and clean up the -church. —T. C. H. LOYAL LADS AND LASSES An interesting episode has occurred in the Los Angeles County Chris tian Endeavor circles which should be given to the young people of the country as an inspiration to them to stand like stalwart soldiers for the infallible Word of God. The county Endeavor officials had been invited to a Southern city to hold their county convention. The theme for the convention was to be “ The Infallible Word,” and the program was arranged in harmony with this thought. One or two of the churches in the city, through their officials, objected to the theme chosen and asked that it be changed, insisting that unless a change was made they would withdraw from participation in the convention and would refuse to entertain any of the delegates. As the Los Angeles County Convention is a very large one this threat was a serious matter. Several suggestions were made to them for a sub stitute theme which would be acceptable to the objectors to “ The Infallible Word.” The question confronting these loyal Endeavorers was a grave one: Could they honestly change the theme? Would such a change not be in the nature of a concession to those who deny the infallibility of God’s Word, a lowering of their standard and a hurt to the heart of their Lord? The natural thing would have been to surrender, but this they did not do. A meeting of the Executive Committee was held and a subscription raised among these young people of one thousand dollars to underwrite the entertainment fund. One Presbyterian church in Los Angeles tendered their building for the convention and agreed to raise the funds necessary to insure its success; but the sound churches in the city where they had first decided to meet stood with them and the convention was held as planned, nearly 3000 delegates being registered. The speakers were all loyal and true men of God who exalted the written and living Word of God. Dr. W. P. White, one of the principal speakers, reports that it was the most spiritual gathering of young people he ever attended. ^The conven tion was opened by “ Fighting Bob” Shuler, pastor of Trinity Methodist Church (South) Los Angeles and the loyal leaders of the Endeavorers who fought the good fight of faith in defense of the infallible Word had
T HE K I N G ’ S B U S I N E S S 677 the conscious joy of seeing the fullness of the blessing of God, over 800 young people dedicating their lives to definite Christian work at a Sunday morning service attended by 2000, and addressed by Dr. Robert A. Hadden. —T. C. H. CHEATING THE CHURCH AND CAJOLING THE CHINESE For the information of our readers we are appending a report from a number of Christian schools in China giving their position regarding the teaching of evolution. We are not quoting in full, blit giving just the main facts. Hangchow C hristian College. Some of our staff hold and teach evolution as God’s method of creation; some do not. (Signed) E. L. Mattox. Boone University, Wuchang. An evasive reply is given by A lfred A. Gilman, President. Shanghai B ap tist College. Evolution as one of God’s methods of creation is taugh t. (Signed) P. J. White. The College of Yale in China, Changsha. We have no college standardiza tion doctrine, hu t th ink th a t a teacher should be left to his own freedom. How ever, I believe th a t all our Christian teachers teach evolution whenever th e sub je c t of origins comes up. Canton Christian College (U nion). We have men on our staff who believe in evolution. We also have men who do not. We are not in terested in any p articu lar dogma but only in the tru th as each one sees it conscientiously. Jas. M. Henry, Y. P. Shantung Christian University (U nion). The President, H arold Balme, advises th a t inquiries should be directed to th e Mission Boards who appoint the teaching staff of th e University. P ek ing Union Medical College. The facts of evolutionary development are taugh t as such in th is college. Henry S. Naughton. University of Nanking (Union) D epartm ent of Zoology. I usually tell people th a t ask me such fool questions as the one contained in th is le tte r th a t evolution is bu t a theory, and theories do not prove anything. I th in k both sides are extremely narrow . However, when it comes to a draw, I would never give up my religious views for a theory. Charles S. Gibbs. University of Nanking, College of A griculture and Forestry. So far as it concerns the origin, or creation of species, 1 present evolution as th e most favor- *able theory or hypothesis as to th e means by which God brought these things about. A lbert N. Stewart, Botanist. University of Nanking, Office of th e P resident. We do not have any restric tions on what our scientific men teach as to evolution. A. J. Brown. T ien tsin Anglo-Chinese College, N. China, Some of our College staff hold and teach th e old view of creation, and others th e accepted modern theory. R.. E. P. Peill, Secretary. Soochow University. I th ink every one of us believes th a t in th e beginning God created th e heavens and th e earth. T h at we consider of fundam ental im portance. As to how He did it, I daresay few of us h ere would be disposed to dogmatize. I am inclined to think, however, th a t th e m ajority of us incline to th e opinion th a t th is method was one of evolution. W. B. Nance, President. Yenching College, Women’s College of Peking University. I th ink th a t prac tically w ithout exception the members of th e faculty have from childhood been ta u g h t th a t in all probability, so far as science has yet explored n atu ra l laws, th a t evolution has been th e way in which God has created th e universe as we know it, and th a t evolution is as great, if no t a g reater, way of dem onstrating God’s power and wisdom, as the old literal in terp retation of the wonderful hymns in the first chapter of Genesis. Alice B. Prance. T rin ity College, Ningpo. The account in Genesis still holds our field and I feel sure will continue to do so for th e future. Believing this, you will under stand th a t so far as I have to do w ith th e teaching here, evolutionary theories of creation are always spoken of as purely speculative and w ithout foundation.
678 T HE K I N G ’S B U S I N E S S We teach all to trutft th e ir Bibles from cover to cover— and if they do th a t they will escape many an erro r th a t is abroad in the world. W. S. Merril, President. This last man rings true and it is a pleasure to present his honest convictions. These schools are all Christian schools and are supported by Christian money. You will have noted how few open and definite statements are made. Why should not every man say “ I am an evolutionist” or “ I am not an evolutionist” ? “ We-teach evolution,” or “ We do not teach evolu tion” ? The theory of evolution denies the Genesis statement of creation. The whole Bible is founded on the Genesis statement. The denial of the Genesis statement is a denial of the Bible. And yet hundreds of thousands of dollars are being poured into the coffers' of these schools from the self- sacrifice of Christian people and used to inject the poison of unbelief and rejection of God’s Word into the minds and hearts of the students. If you have been a party to this crime through ignorance, ask God’s forgiveness, and then resolve that you will refuse to give a penny to any work where those who handle the funds will not insure their being used only where God’s holy Word is honored from Genesis 1 to Revelation 22. —T. C. H. ^ ^ 14 . gfe a » THE LAY OF THE LOST LAYMAN Here it is—in the Literary Digest, April 14, 1923! This layman has been traveling around among the churches, trying to find a preacher who will tell him that he is a lost sinner and on his way to hell. He says (the underscoring is ours): “ I have faults, lots of them . Call them sins, ju st for th e sake of argument. I have shopped around In church afte r church, Sunday after Sunday, w ithout hearing th e m a tte r mentioned. Yet it is one of th e most im portant questions in my life—coupled w ith how to get rid of my faults. It would appear as though we in th e pews no longer had sins worth talk ing about. We have m ental com plexes, distorted points of view, and all th a t so rt of thing, bu t as for th e Garden of Eden variety of sins, it seems to be as scarce among u s.as the dodo. Occasion ally an evangelist appears am id clouds of sawdust, trum peting about, th e sins of people in yellow journals. They say some of th e so-called Fundam en talists ta lk about sin, and th a t among certain other ‘schools of though t’ long since de cadent it is an accepted subject. P erhaps it is, bu t it’s a shame th a t such an expressive word should be confined to th e vocabulary of controversy and not used in th e field of practical living. I, for one, yearn to be ‘cussed ou t’; to be drawn over th e coals; to h ea r th e so rt of direct ta lk which called fo rth from one of a Scotch congregation, who was listening to his pastor th e enthusiastic exclamation. ‘Haud ’em ower th e pit, Meenister; haud ’em ower the p it.’ They tell us of lots of things w rong w ith th e social o rder; hu t who composes the social order if no t a lot of us fellows down in the pews? I f th e m inisters convince enough of us w h at’s wrong w ith us, and ‘sell’ us thoroughly on th e way to pu t it righ t, th e re will be slight need to worry about social order or disorder. “ But it would be more th an presumptuous to try and suggest subject m aterial for th e preachers. The im portant th ing is th a t some of us in th e pews are not gripped, stirred , remotivated, by what they say. We go to church to get a certain power, and we come away empty-handed, The rapid life of business rushes us along day afte r day. We have no tim e for doctrinal decisions. We can’t stop to work out all th e world’s problems. Our lives have certain definite impacts. The message of th e Church can help us make them rig h t by pu tting power and sp irit into us. This isn’t done by a long string of negatives.
T HE K I N G ’S B U S I N E S S 679 : “ I shall continue to feel th a t th e question ‘W h at’s wrong w ith the churches?’ is justifiable un til I begin to h ear th e voice which comes from lips touched by live coals from off th e a lta r of affirmation. I th in k the preachers have ‘passed the buck’ to me long enough. I ’m going to pass it back to them , and keep praying.” This layman has hit the nail straight on the head. He has said some thing with a sharp point to it. He has arraigned us preachers and called us to time. He has sounded a note of warning. He has called us back to our business. He has criticised our ' ‘soft-pedalling” and demanded a manly message from the preacher’s throne. In common parlance, he says: ‘‘Why don’t you call a spade a spade? Why don’t you tell the truth? Why don’t you say that the wages of sin is death—“ Be sure your sin will find you out;” “ The soul that sinneth it shall die” ; “ And in hell he lifted up his eyes, being in torment” ; “ He that believeth not shall not see life, but the wrath of God abideth on him.” The layman is right.. We know he is right. Men demand a man’s message from the pulpit. Few unsaved men ever darken the door of the church. There is no appeal to them in the mushy, bread-and-milk, weak- as-water, soft, sentimental twaddle which emanates from so many modern preachers. Use the Word of God and “ hit ’em hard” ! Convict their consciences and fill their hearts with fear of eternal punishment and lead them to the cross of Christ where the bleeding body of the Son of God pleads »with a great passion of love for the lost and cries, “Come unto Me, and I will give “E arnestly contend for the faith once for oil delivered to the saints.”—-Jude 3, “ The Faith”—the great cardinal doctrines of the Gospel. “ Contend for the Faith”—implying that it will be powerfully assaulted (see vs. 18-19). “ Once for all deposited’’»-with whom? Councils? Popes? Priests? Scholars? NO—saints, Christians. The safety of the faith rests not in any organizations—not in any ecclesiastical powers. It rests primarily in the experience of individual believers’. So long as God places the seal of the Holy Spirit on the lives of those who believe—so long as this faith is the means of making new creatures out of hell-bound men and women—so long the Faith has nothing to iear. But let us remember that in order to make the truth carry, it needs to be incarnated. It must be held experimentally, consistently. There are some who are very “ contentious” about the Faith, but it cannot be said that they are good specimens of what the Faith can produce. They become so vehement and bitter in the defense of doctrines that they forget to be charitable toward those who have had little opportunity to see the truth. This is not what is meant by “ Earnestly contend for the Faith.” The Faith needs saints to live it more than it needs swords to fight for it. A holy, Christlike life is the Gospel’s best defense. This is the first step in defending the Faith—the secret of successful evangelism. It is better than all the apologetics, as valuable as these may be. Fenelon was a man for whom to live was Christ. Lord Peterburg, you rest” ! —T. C. H. THE FAITH ONCE FOR ALL DEPOSITED
680
T HE K I N G ’S B U S I N E S S a notorious skeptic, was once forced to put up for the night in the same room with Penelon at a country inn. He could not fail to realize the power of the Spirit of God in Fenelon’s life. The skeptic hurried away in the morning, with the exclamation, “ Another night with that fellow and I would be a Christian in spite of myself.” Penelon was a spiritual magnet He was a true depository of the Paith. He realized that this deposit was made not to be kept, but circulated. It was held in trust. He lived it while he talked it. His life was an unanswerable argument for the divine authority of the Gospel. _g ^ B DR. FAUNCE SAID IT—NO FOOLIN’ “Evolution a Powerful Aid to Religious F a ith ”—what a strik ing headline for an article by P resident Faunce, of Brown University, in th e L iterary Digest! W hat a relief th is will be to many in these days when thousands have come home from school and college m inus th e ir Christian faith because evolutionary teaching had completely destroyed it. Dr. Faunce evidently realizes th a t something desperate must be done to save the faces of th e professors. He begins by saying th a t a large number of sincere enthusiasts are pro claim ing th a t hum an progress is a delusion, and are basing th e ir pessimistic and non-co-operative a ttitu d e on the baldly literal in terp retation of a few of th e obscurest texts in th e Bible. This is th e old game of trying to confuse organic evolution and human progress, and so m islead many a simple soul. We have never yet heard of an orthodox preacher who did not believe in hum an progress. Progress in human affairs is very different from evolution as a universa.1 method in creation. Evo lutionists are insulting th e intelligence of thousands of people when they seek to pull th e wool over th e eyes of people w ith th is argument. P residen t Faunce then tells us th e law of evolution is as old as th e New Testam ent declaration of “ first th e blade, then the ear, then th e full corn In th e ear.” And perhaps th ere are some unthinking souls who would be taken in by this, and fail to see th a t th e re is a vast difference between th e n atu ra l development of corn and th e evolving of one species from ano ther species. H undreds of centuries have witnessed no change in corn. The nine-fold chal lenge of Genesis 1—-“ Let each bring fo rth afte r his k in d ”— is still unanswered. This is n atu ra l development w ithin defined lim its and not organic evolution. In all seriousness P resident Faunce then tells us th a t “ th e doctrine of evolution, righ tly understood and in terp reted , is today one of th e most powerful aids to religious faith. It has delivered thousands from perplexity am ounting to despair.” This is news to us. We have heard of hundreds who have been made infidels— who have thrown away th eir Bibles and discarded th e ir belief in the g reat fundam ental teachings of Christianity—who have to rn th e h earts of devout Christian parents w ith th e ir blasphemy and then plunged into the things of th e world and th e flesh to find th e ir satisfaction. Oh th a t Dr. Faunce would tell us more about those thousands w ith whom he is acquainted who have found such re st of h eart through th eir belief in evolution! Why is it th a t the Bible is ever being held up to scorn by these professors
T HE K I N G ’S B U S I N E S S 681 in th e ir classrooms? Why are th e papers so full of th e ir blasphemous u tte r ances against th e Christian faith? There is a screw loose somewhere in the argum ent of the learned Dr. Faunce. But now he caps th e climax. He outshines himself. He shows th e most magnanimous sp irit toward those who will still believe th e Bible. He says th a t wise men will not seek to exclude th e Fund am en talist from church fellowship bu t will ra th e r understand th a t he is sincerely wrong and hence on th e way to become rig h t— he needs not violent objurgation nor condescending pity, bu t simply continuous education— he is underm ining th e faith of thousands. Could anything be more beautiful th an th a t? Bless his heart! He would not have us thrown out of the church for believing in th e Bible as our all- sufficient guide, in th e Christ of God and His substitu tion ary atonement, and all these things— but would sweetly to lerate us, even though in our blindness we are "underm ining th e faith of thousands.” Thus we are brought to the absurd conclusion th a t th e defenders of "th e faith once delivered unto th e sain ts”— th e same kind of stanch defenders as were th e fathers who founded th is nation— are faith wreckers. And th ere isn’t a sign of a tw inkle in th e eye, or playful sm ile on th e face of Dr. F aunce in the photograph which accompanies th is article! B rethren, scholarship has spoken. Let all th e earth keep silence before it. —K. L. B. g*» a » THE EVANGELISM OF THE MODERNIST The Rev. C. H. Burdick, contributing to the Congregationalist, deplores th e fact th a t a t a Christian Endeavor convention held a t Tacoma, W ashington, th e leading speakers were all pronounced Fundam entalists, and literatu re em phasizing th e old orthodox views of th e Bible was carried on th e book tables. F u rth erm o re, he declares th a t it was very noticeable the way th e young people flocked to these speakers. He finds no fau lt w ith th e sp iritu al quality of th e addresses bu t th ink s it a pity th a t th e young people of th e churches are no t being won over to th e progressive way of thinking. Discussing th e question of w hat is to be done if these young folks are to be kept from th e Fundam entalists, Mr. Burdick makes some in teresting comments. " I t is well,” he says, “to give full credit to the opposition, for th e excellent characteristics they manifest. They are, in the first place, very much interested in the development of young people’s work in th e ir churches, and do not neglect th e expressional aspect of th is work. Secondly, these views are positive, con crete, and easily grasped by m inds of average intelligence. This is of the g reatest advantage psychologically, for the average mind, according to our educa tors, is of th e twelve-year-old grade, only a small percentage of people being predom inantly intellectual, or even slightly superior to th e average. Another consideration is th e fact th a t expressional activities are entered into w ith g reater zest by those of the emotional and volitional types which greatly predom inate over th e intellectual type of mind. This means th a t if our progressive th inkers are going to get anywhere w ith th e ir thoughts, they m u st be tran slated in term s of feeling and action, and these are the ruling characteristics of young people and of most adults.”
682 T HE K I N G ’S B U S I N E S S Edward E verett Hale once said, “Unitarianism fails fo r th e w ant of a prophet to speak th e language of th e people.” Mr. Hale m ight well have said, “ a prophet to speak th e message of God.” It is doubtful if this so-called intellectual message can be tran slated in term s of “ feeling and action.” Modernism has no evangelism. The w riter in th e Con- gregationalist concludes th a t th e progressive th ink ers m ust have some kind of an evangelistic message if they are to hold the young people, for he adm its th a t “ th e liberal type of religious life has a tendency to be careless and shallow .” Mr. Burdick seems a t a loss, however, when it comes to saying w hat th is new evangel istic message is to be. When th e late Dr. George F. Pentecost was pastor in Brooklyn, a distinguished New York m inister asked him to conduct evangelistic meetings in his church. In surprise, Dr. Pentecost replied, “Why, you do not believe in th e Deity of Christ and th e atonement, which I preach.” Said th e m inister, “ I know th a t very well, bu t I also know th a t if anybody is to be converted it must be by means of th e old view.’’ On ano th er occasion a distinguished scholar of th e higher critics confessed to Dr. Pentecost th a t his conversion and present peace w ith God were based on the vicarious and substitu tion ary sacrifice of Christ, and th a t in his daily asking for the forgiveness of sins he had to appeal to th e divine sacrifice as evangelicals understand it. At th e same tim e he declared th a t he could no t him self preach th a t Gospel on account of its unphilosophical and unscientific char acter. T h at is to say, for his own peace and salvation he had to depend on th e old faith which he learned a t his m other’s knee, yet he dared not preach it to others. Jonath an Edwards, in his diary of David B rainerd, says th a t th is apostle to the Indians though t for some tim e th a t th e best way to make men sober was by preaching to them the attrib u tes of God, bu t his plan failed and he could not produce one sober man. “Then,” he says, “ I bethought me th a t I would go and preach Jesus Christ and Him crucified; and many a hard face relaxed, many an eye shed tears th a t had never wept before, and I found th a t th e best way to make men sober was to make them sp iritu al.” From th a t tim e he gloried in and held forth nothing b u t th e Cross.—-K . L. B. ... 1 1 I ' W l M 'M. SHOULD BE GETTING YOUR TOOLS READY so that God may trust you with some worth-while work for Him. Do you know your Bible? Take your choice of one of our Correspondence Courses and begin study any time. Write for a circular describing our seven courses. $2 to $5.
FORM O F B EQ U EST TO T H E B IB L E IN ST ITU TE I give and bequeath to Bible Institute of Los Angeles , incorporated under the laws of the State of California ............... .......-..............................— Dollars, and I direct that the release of the President of the Board of Directors of said Bible Institute of Los Angeles shall be sufficient discharge to my executors in the premises.
aw ntm iiifiiii«ififfiH frrffi*iifiiininiiiiiiiniiiiiriiri(ifiiir[irrirfinfiiiriiiifritrr«niirii[iiiïnfiifffffffffffrfn¥rffrrrffrfrrfrrm inrfm rrfrrrrriiw n«hft
|
BIBLE
BRIEFS
I
MARGINAL NOTES FOR TOUR STUDY BIBLE
niiiiiiitiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiaiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiHiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii
Illlllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllltlllllllllll1111*
Three g reatest realities: ruined all— Rom. 3:23. Christ has ransomed all— 1 Tim. 2:6. F aith saves all—Acts 13:39. The norm al answer of a new-born soul to Godlÿ-Rom. 10:10-11. God’s purpose to th e Jew in this ago— Rom. 11:5. Isra el’s th ree “ un tils”— Mt. 23:39; Lk. 21:24; Rom. 11:25. The relation of the church ,to Israel— Rom. 11:17-18. How to get vengeance on your ene mies— Rom,. 12:20. A WH we shall always owe—Rom. 13:8. God’s food laws for the Christian— Rom. 14:21. F o r rewards we labour— 1 Cor. 3 :8 ; 15:58; 1 Thess. 1:3. F o r salvation we stop laboring— Jn. 6:29. The g reatest word th a t God w rites over a Christian life— 1 Cor. 4:2. Consecration definedS-letting God have w hat He has bought and paid for — 1 Cor. 6:19-20. Something to constantly remember— many have fallen from : th e very spot where you stand— 1 Cor. 10:12. The Gospel according to you— 2 Cor. 3:2-3. The best “Beauty Specialist”- ^ ! Cor. 3:18. The proof of m inisterial in teg rity— 2 Cor. 4:5. L ight— th e first th ing in creation— Gen. 1, and the first in salvation—- Eph. 5 :8 ; 2 Cor. 4:6. The believer’s th ree states of body: In life— 2 Cor. 5:6. In death— Phil. 1:23. In resurrection-=&l Jn. 3:2. Sin has
The first record of a Jew who be lieved w ith all his household— Acts 18:8. One w ith God is a m ajority—Acts 18:10. The g reat aim of all preaching— Acts 18:28. One may be pure through th e blood of th e Son of man w ithout being pure from the blood of the sons of men-— Acts 20:26. The first duty of all church officials— Acts 20:28. The best good-bye is prayer—Acts 20:36. Tears of warning—Acts 20:31; sym pathy— 2 Tim. 1 :4 ; service— Acts 20: 19; devotion— Lk. 7 :38 ; faith ^lM ark 9:24. How to make a report of your Chris tia n work—Acts 21:19. If th e credit is given to God, the people will glorify the Lord— y. 20. The language of some church lead ers today—-“Do th is th a t we say to th e e”— Acts 21:23. L isten to th e crowd and you’ll get nothing straig h t—Acts 21:34. A good ru le to govern our censures of o ther people—-Acts 25:16. Saddest word in th e English lang uage— “almost”— Acts 26:28. A valuable testimony for Christian ity— “Everywhere it is spoken against” — Acts 28:22. No cause th a t is not spoken against comes to supremacy. The book of Romans contains over 60 quotations from the Old Testament. The function of th e m inistry—Horn. 1 : 11 .
WK}) N o t a Candid Contest ? Mr. Bryan (in the Presbyterian) Suggests How Liberalist—Fun damentalist Controversy can be Shortened
Then let them apply th eir evolution ary hypothesis to the Bible step by step. We believe in th e m iracles as recorded in th e Old and New Testam ents; let them be candid and declare whether they believe in the m iracles— if not all, in which ones, and why they reject some and accept others. If they ac cept any miracles, let them reconcile th e m iracle w ith evolution and give us a ru le by which we can distinguish one recorded m iracle from another. If they do not believe in miracles, do they believe in th e virgin b irth of Christ, as we do? Some of them brush th is aside by saying th a t th e virgin b irth is not m aterial. The real ques tion is not w hether they regard it as m aterial, b u t w hether they regard the account of it in Matthew and Luke as true. If they reject th e virgin b irth , w hat is th e ir view as to th e b irth of Christ? Which, if any, of th e m iracles of Christ do they believe to have been performed? ■ Do they believe in Christ’s bodily resurrection as recorded in the Gospels, or do they say, as one au tho r (whose book is studied in some of th e theo logical sem inaries) th a t th e disciples believed in the resurrection, bu t th a t it is a mystery why they did. Recently a New York m inister is reported to have denied th e deity of Christ and th e virgin birth, claim ing th a t Jesus was entirely human. No issue can be settled until it is understood. In court, therefore, the first thing th a t is done is to define the issue. Is it fair for our adversaries to hide behind vague statem ents and denounce us as illiberal, w ithout spe cifically defining liberality as they un derstand it? This is a free country.
contest between the De- nders of th e F aith and the ^called L iberals ought to M B entirely fra n k and candid.
Both sides claim to be Christians, and they are .in duty bound to be candid w ith each other. Christ never avoided controversy, bu t his position was always frank ly stated, and he saw to it th a t th e position of th e opposition was also plainly stated. Evolution is th e root of discord, and those who present it as a sub stitu te for God’s Word have upon them th e burden of proof to establish th e ir position. If th e harmony of th e church is disturbed, the evolutionists are th e disturbers. The discussion will be sho rt if the evolutionists will frankly state what p arts of th e Bible they find it neces sary to elim inate in order to make God’s Word harmonize w ith m an’s views— “ th e modern view,” “ the scientific view,” “ advanced though t,” or th e “in telligence of today”— we have all these phrases hurled down a t us constantly from those who not only feel bu t say th a t they are our m ental superiors. We believe in th e Mosaic account of m an’s creation— th a t man was made by separate act and is not a blood relation of any of th e b ru te creation. T h at is th e point of cleavage. The evolution ists declare th a t we are descended from th e lower animals; ought they not to be frank enough to adm it th a t they are, and to name th e animal which they regard as th e ir next of kin? If they are not w illing to identify themselves w ith any living species, they ought to be candid enough to tell us th a t they “ feel” th a t they have b ru te blood in them , although they cannot trace it to any p articu lar branch of the imaginary tree to which they cling.
THE K I N G ’S B U S I N E S S
685
Those who believe in th e Bible’s God and in man as God’s separate creation, placed here for a purpose and as a p art of God’s plan, can certainly do more if they are harmonious in th eir beliefs th a n they can if they are oc cupied defending th e Book of books from th e attack s of those w ithin th eir own organizations. The controversy need not be a heated one, bu t th e re is certainly need of light. Our position is known— th e Bible states it in clear and unm istakable language; now let our opponents sta te th e ir posi tion in language as clear and unm is takable, and th e discussion can pro ceed in an orderly way and be con ducted in a Christian spirit. th e re was no room for th e play of hu man emotions. The atten tive reading of th e chapter will, however, effectually disprove th is idea, showing, as it does, th e Apostle in a mood of mingled ten derness and indignation. Instead of letting loose the flood gates of denunciation against certain ap athetic and calloused members of th is Corinthian Church, he appeals first to th e fact th a t God in marvelous ways has set His seal upon his m inistry, then proceeds to vindicate th e self-effacing character of his service, and finally to w arn against the soul-destroying power of sinful indulgence. Notw ithstanding th e restrain ed language employed, the intelligent reader cannot fail to detect th e sense of injury, not to say indig nation, which leads th e Apostle to re buke th e suggestion th a t he or any of his co-laborers were moved by sordid motives. He calls upon God to witness th a t his passion was for th e edification of those to whom he m inistered; and
and anyone can believe what he pleases in religion or refuse to believe. No injustice is done to a preacher when he is excluded from th e m inistry of any church on th e ground th a t he does not believe in th e doctrines of th e church. Come, let us reason tog ether in calm ness and in friendliness, agreeing where we can and differing where we must. A church, is not strong if its members must employ th e ir energies in disputes w ith each other. Those who reject th e Bible as it is w ritten and sub stitu te th e guesses of science for th e tru th of th e Scriptures ought to be w illing to have a church of th e ir own where th e members can work in h ar mony for th a t which they believe.
N o t Tours, But Y O U (2 Cor. 12:14) By Hugh R. Munro, Vice-Pres Niagara Lithograph Co., New York
|N th is day of multiplied finan cial appeals th e mere sugges tion of discouraging gifts of money to a w orthy object
seems revolutionary; nevertheless this is th e manifest purpose of th e Apostle P aul in the words quoted. Weymouth’s tran slation gives added emphasis to th e point, for it reads, “ I desire not your money, b u t yourselves.” The man who feels th a t, having given liberally to church support or other benevolence, he has rendered his full measure of service, can find no encour agement here. He may “ give all his goods to feed th e poor” and yet be no more th an “ sounding brass and tin k ling cymbal.” There is a m istaken idea w ith many people th a t th e w riters of th e New Tes tam en t were men devoid of th e ordinary hum an qualities and passions. The Apostle Paul, for example, is regarded as so superlatively sp iritual and all- absorbed in heavenly concerns th a t
T HE K I N G ’ S B U S I N E S S
686
loving devotion to Christ; while in the other he bears w itness th a t because these Macedonian saints “ first gave th eir own selves,” th e ir liberality could scarcely be restrained. H ere is set forth th e g reat principle lying a t th e h eart of sp iritual progress. It teaches th a t while in th e calculations of men money is omnipotent, w ith God gifts of money are of value solely as th e by-product of a consecrated life. This reasoning is a manifest challenge to th e sp irit of the present age. In its u ltim ate term s we are brought face to face w ith th e conviction th a t no vital in terest of the cause of Christ is retard ed through lack of sufficient money, bu t only by th e in complete and halting devotion of those who bear th e Christian name. We thu s need a new type of campaign in the Church, in which our text will be the guiding sta r and in which the enlist m ent of lives for Christ will be the sole objective. Intensely P ersonal These term s, “ not yours, bu t you,” are intensely personal. They are ad dressed to h ea rt and conscience and compel an answer to th e question whether we have merely given Christ a tith e of our possessions or have yielded Him the sceptre over our lives. Such a searching and all-im portant inquiry may not be dismissed by a few cant phrases about regu lar church attend ance, or by a certain smug satisfaction growing out of th e number of offices and comm ittee appointments we may hold in connection w ith organized Christian work. There are certain Scriptural tests to be applied which will infallibly indicate the measure of our consecration. Let us consider one of th e most obvious of these for a moment and ask to what extent we are ful filling th e Great Commission by which we are called to become w itnesses for Christ. This is a d ire c t. and inescap able call to every Christian disciple. To devote a fortune to missions or support
far from any ta in t of selfish interest, he had deliberately denied himself th e proper support which was due him as th e ir m inister, lest he should give any basis for th e charge of having a mer cenary spirit. There is a degree of irony as well as deep pathos in the language of verse 13, when he says: “F o r what is it wherein ye were inferior to other churches, except it be th a t I myself was not burdensome to you? Forgive me th is w rong.’’ It is w ith th is _background th a t the words in th e following verse will be best understood, “ I will not be burden some to you; for I seek not yours, but you.” As a tru e m inister of Christ, and as an inspired apostle, he saw w ith un erring vision th a t th e g reat end of evangelism and all sp iritu al teaching was to secure th e complete su rrender, to Christ of the life of each believer. He who yields nothing more th an earth ly possessions may be a liability ra th e r th an an asset to th e cause of Christ; while a fully yielded life must inevitably include all one’s gifts and powers, as well as possessions, w ith the cultivation of a sp irit of tru st and obe dience, th rough which alone all of these can find effective use. There is an in teresting connection between th is text and a related passage in 2 Corinthians 8:5. Here the Apostle, referring to th e Macedonian Christians and th e ir abounding liberality, te sti fies th a t they actually gave beyond th e ir ability, so th a t he and his fellow laborers were relu ctan t to. accept the responsibility of adm inistering a fund representing so much of sacrifice. He adds th is tender and expressive tribu te as th e only possible explanation of such unexampled devotion, “They first gave th e ir own selves to the Lord.” The tex t in chapter 8 is a concrete illu stration of th a t of chapter 12. In the one case he testifies th a t he is seek ing, not money, bu t lives laid down in
T H E K I N G ’ S B U S I N E S S
687
every in terest of the Church of Christ. It is tim e th a t th is vital question should be pressed home. Suppose you were asked this moment how recently you have w itnessed in public, or to a single individual con cerning Christ’s saving power— what would th e answer be? If you were asked how recently you have w ritten a le tte r on behalf of Christ or handed out a gospel or tract, or even prayed earnestly for an unsaved one, could you give a satisfactory reply? Would you attem p t to explain th a t you are a con sta n t atten d an t a t church, a regu lar contributor, an elder, deacon, or tru s tee? -.'.“ I seek not yours, but you.” F acing th e Question When this responsibility is pressed th ere are always some who will urge the lim itation of tim e and th e pressure of other duties. But let us be honest and face the question as to who has the supreme claim upon our tim e and streng th? It is ju st here th a t there lies th e g reat reproach resting upon multitudes who bear th e Christian name. The fact is we organize our lives and assume responsibilities in u t ter independence of th e claims of our Saviour. The question of setting ap a rt a definite portion of our tim e for His sacred use and of seeking to develop capacities which will be effective in the advancement of His kingdom scarcely enters into the calculations of many of us. W ith feverish zeal we devote ourselves early and late to train ing for business or professional demands, and yet can not find a half hour each day for Bible study, prayer, and Christian work. Is th is an index of the value we place upon our redemption, or have we fallen into such callous indifference th a t our highest obligation is forgotten and self-interest has usurped th e place of Christ upon the throne of our lives? There have been some in every gen eration to whom the stewardship of
a sub stitu te on th e field does not ab solve from th is obligation in th e slight est degree. Christ declares, “Ye are my w itnesses,” and evidence is w anting th a t the term s of this call adm it of any exceptions. Moreover, as one reads th e history of th e Apostolic Church it becomes in creasingly evident th a t personal w it nessing was th e universal sign of dis- cipleship, and th a t the term s Chris tian and w itness were synonymous. It is equally clear as one reviews Church history down to th e p resen t th at, w ith each g reat sp iritu al awakening through the centuries, th ere has been an instinc tive re tu rn to th is apostolic ideal of service. In th e g reat revivals in Wales and in Korea a few years ago, th e ou t standing characteristics were personal testimony and soul-winning. W ithout assum ing th a t all are quali fied for public preaching, let it be re membered th a t th e p rim ary qualifica tions for th e w inning of souls is a genuine personal experience of Christ’s power, and a vocabulary extended enough to tell what His power has w rought in the life. It is a lamentable fact th a t we seem to have almost un i versally accepted th e idea th a t Chris tian testimony is to be reserved for the pulpit and u ttered by ordained men. This is u tterly foreign to Scriptural principles. There is a g reat field for lay effort even in public preaching, and opportunities along th is line abound in every community. It is said th e re are more th an twenty thousand laymen in England, who are rendering voluntary service as Gospel preachers in the Wes leyan denom ination alone, holding a larger number of services each week than all the ordained m inisters of th a t body. If bu t a single such layman m ight be found in each of the Evangel ical Churches of America it is clear th a t th e existing force of preachers and evangelists would be doubled at once and a m ighty quickening would come to
688
T H E K I N G ’ S B U S I N E S S
life has been a very real and blessed fact. Such have been th e channels of all tru e Christian progress. Less than fifteen years ago a gifted Yale student of independent fortune, having com pleted his college course, decided to make a trip around th e world. Visit ing some of th e mission stations in heathen lands, he was deeply Impressed, bu t apparently unaffected as to his life plans. R eturning by way of England he spent a Sunday in London, and see ing an announcement th a t Dr. Torrey was to preach in one of the g reat public halls, went to h ear him. The main impression of the service does no t ap pear to have been in th e sermon, bu t in a message in song by a young lady who, w ith g reat feeling, sang the fam il iar hymn, “ I S urrender All.” T hat hour m arked a life crisis, and re tu rn ing, he determ ined to become a foreign m issionary and to give his life to th a t most difficult field of work among the Mohammedans. Several years later, while studying the Arabic language in Egypt preparato ry to service, he was seized w ith sudden fever and passed on to his reward. I t is scarcely necessary to inquire how th is deep, sp iritual experience af fected the use of th is young m an’s pos sessions. His in terest was immediately extended to a number of th e most v ital sp iritu al movements, to which he gave of his effort, counsel, and open-handed bounty. Following his death th e open ing of his will revealed a testam entary document so rem arkable in ch aracter th a t it has become historic. Practically th e entire fortune, am ounting to more th a n one m illion dollars, was bequeath ed to a number of m issionary, evangel istic, and B ible-training movements, showing a depth of discernment and breadth of sp iritual outlook unexampled in a man only twenty-five years of age. O ther men of th e new generation are catching th is vision of th e stewardship of life, and are finding a new purpose
which lifts th e life above th e plane of self-indulgence, and th e sordid business of mere money-getting to rela te it to a divine plan for blessing mankind. A dozen years ago a young fellow brought up in one Of th e ritu alistic churches where his heart-yearning re mained unsatisfied, stepped into a noon day prayer-meeting for business men held in th e basement of one of New York’s downtown churches. Here he received the vision of a life yielded in complete subjection to th e will of Christ. The experience came a t a stage when, afte r years of struggle against adverse circumstances, he had become successfully established in busi ness, and th e whole life perspective underw ent an immediate change. The sp irit and relations of the home felt a powerful new impulse; la ten t gifts for organization, soul-winning, and other forms of Christian service were discov ered and brought into use. F inally a considerable and rapidly accumulat ing fortune was brought under Christ’s sway until today, through its m inistry, he is aiding in th e support of a score of sp iritu al in terests extending around th e world. T ru e Stewardship These are but typical examples of modest, self-effacing stewardship which comprehends th e entire life ra th e r th an the mere tith in g of th e income, which in itself can hardly be regarded as a spiritually stim ulating or soul-enlarg ing process. It is perfectly clear, according to all sp iritual standards, th a t servants of Christ, such as Luther, Wesley, Carey, Livingston, Spurgeon, and Moody, in giving themselves, made an offering to Christ far more costly and precious th a n th e most princely endowment of any multi-m illionaire. The real stand ard of value in th e sp iritual realm is th e surrendered will. When th is su rrend er has been made, th en th e dedication o f time, ability, and possessions follows
Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 68 Page 69 Page 70 Page 71 Page 72 Page 73 Page 74 Page 75 Page 76 Page 77 Page 78 Page 79 Page 80 Page 81 Page 82 Page 83 Page 84 Page 85 Page 86 Page 87 Page 88 Page 89 Page 90 Page 91 Page 92 Page 93 Page 94 Page 95 Page 96 Page 97 Page 98 Page 99 Page 100 Page 101 Page 102 Page 103 Page 104 Page 105 Page 106 Page 107 Page 108 Page 109 Page 110 Page 111 Page 112 Page 113 Page 114 Page 115 Page 116 Page 117 Page 118 Page 119 Page 120Made with FlippingBook - Online magazine maker